Echostar's Rise to Power
by BubbleKitty814
Summary: Wind will rage, Thunder will strike and Shadow will threaten to swallow it all, but the Echo of the River will save it. SET YEARS AFTER THE LAST HOPE Echo, a loner, joins RiverClan to train as a warrior. When disaster strikes, she's forced to set out a perilous journey to save her new Clan. Can she save all of RiverClan? Contains SEXUAL THEMES, VIOLENCE, CURSING and TALKING CATS
1. Chapter 1

Inside a den made of sticks and reeds, sleeping on a nest, lay a black she-cat with white ears, white paws and a striped tail. Along with her other markings, she had white stripes down her back and a grey belly. Opening her eyes, they were revealed to be a vivid sky blue.  
>Echo yawned, then grimaced as pain scrambled up her spine from the dog bite on her back leg. Bending so that she could lick it, she looked around. <em>Where am I?<em>  
>"Hey, how are you feeling?" a soft voice called.<br>Oh yeah. Echo turned her head away from the voice. "I'm fine." She growled.  
>"You were hanging from a dog's mouth." Replied the voice. "It's okay if you're not fine." Brightberry padded out from the corner of the den they were in. "Let me see your wound."<br>"I said I'm fine!" snarled Echo, pulling her leg under her, ignoring the pain.  
>Another scent drifted into the den and a white warrior padded in. He was dripping with water, his pelt hanging off his skin heavily. When he spoke, his voice was deep and gruff, "You should let our medicine cat look at your wound." He rumbled.<br>Dipping her head warily, Echo pulled her torn leg out and let Brightberry inspect it.  
>"Have you made up your mind yet?" asked the white warrior, Troutstar.<br>"Yes." Answered Echo, her voice sounding strained over the pain of Brightberry treating her wound.  
>"What is your answer?"<br>"My answer is yes."

"Let all cats old enough to eat prey join here beneath the great tree for a clan meeting!"  
>Troutstar's voice rang clearly throughout the RiverClan camp. He was perched on the branch of a tree that bent over the RiverClan camp.<br>Brightberry nudged Echo outside. "You better go." She murmured.  
>Nodding, Echo dragged herself out to the other cats as they gathered under the over-hanging tree.<br>"Today is a great day." Troutstar announced. "For today we again make sure that RiverClan will live on. Today, we name a new apprentice!"  
>The clan let out a few happy cheers before quieting down to let their leader continue.<br>"Echo, please come forward."  
>While the loner limped over forward, there were a few worried murmurs but they died down when Troutstar leapt down from the tree.<br>"Echo,"  
>The loner turned her head up to the leader, her ears pricked.<br>"Do you promise to uphold the warrior code, and defend RiverClan, even with the cost of your life?"  
>Echo hesitated for a moment, but only for a moment, before nodding her head. "I do."<br>Troutstar smiled. "Then from this moment on, you will be named Echopaw. Your mentor will be Mudpelt."  
>The leader paused for a moment to let the brown tom slink forward to stand next to his apprentice.<br>"Mudpelt, you are an honourable warrior. You are a superb fisher and your stealth skills are unmatchable." Troutstar flicked his ear before finishing. "I hope you will pass these qualities onto Echopaw."  
>Mudpelt turned and bent down. Echopaw reached up and touched noses with the brown tom.<br>"Echopaw! Echopaw!" the Clan cheered.  
>Slowly, everyone broke away and went back to doing their business, leaving Echopaw and Mudpelt alone in the clearing.<br>"So." Growled Mudpelt. "You can't really start training yet." He glanced at the apprentice's back leg.  
>The black loner- no, apprentice, glanced back. "Yeah."<br>They both stood silent for a little bit.  
>"Brightberry says it's not deep and I'll be healed by the time of the Gathering."<br>"Okay."  
>Again, they both stood silently for a while.<br>"I guess I should go rest."  
>"Yeah."<p>

Over the next few days, Mudpelt visited Echopaw a lot and told her about the kind of training they'd be doing. Eventually, Echopaw was out of the medicine cat den and she moved into the apprentice den.

"Wake up, sleepyhead." Echopaw prodded Whisperpaw. "Your mentor wants you for the dawn patrol." She murmured.  
>Whisperpaw blinked her eyes open, before turning them to Echopaw. I don't care, I'm tired. they said.<br>Echopaw purred before prodding the apprentice again. "You still gotta get up."  
>Whisperpaw made a sound like a sigh, before getting up and padding out.<br>Echopaw liked Whisperpaw.  
>Too bad Whisperpaw couldn't speak.<p>

"Gathering!" Lemonpaw grinned. "Gathering! Gathering!"  
>Whisperpaw turned around and bit down on Lemonpaw's ear. He yelped and stared at her. She glared back.<br>"Fine." He grumbled stepping out of the den. "Well, I'mma go eat. You coming, Echo?"  
>Echopaw glanced up. "Yeah, just a sec." She hurriedly licked her paw and dragged it over her ear a couple of times, before getting up and padding past Whisperpaw. The older apprentice looked her and the black and white she-cat shrugged. "Sorry, I'm hungry."<br>The tabby's shoulders slumped and she made a dramatic fainting motion in despair of being left alone in the den for around 2 minutes. Echopaw laughed before hurrying over to Lemonpaw. The golden apprentice grinned at her and pushed a carp over.  
>"Thanks." She mumbled, settling down.<br>"So you start training tomorrow?"  
>"Yeah."<br>"That's exciting."  
>"Yeah."<br>"I mean, you've been apprentice for a while but you only just starting now, right?"  
>"Yeah."<br>"Well- "  
>"Could you, maybe, I don't know, shut up?" Echopaw growled from around a mouthful of carp. "I'm trying to eat."<br>Lemonpaw looked hurt for a second, before shrugging. "Okay." He took a bite of his salmon. Glancing up, he opened his mouth. "Y'know-"  
>"I said shut up."<br>"Sorry."  
>They sat in silence for a while, then Pebbleclaw came over to collect Lemonpaw for the Gathering. Giving an apologetic shrug, Lemonpaw got up and followed his mentor.<br>Echopaw finished off her carp, then padded back to the apprentice den. Immediately, Whisperpaw's head shot up. Her eyes gleamed eagerly and her friend laughed.  
>"Yeah, okay. I'll chat with you now. I mean, we gotta stay up till Lemonpaw and Blackpaw get back, right?"<br>The tabby grinned and nodded quickly.

A paw prodded Echopaw's side. She growled. He prodded her again.  
>"What?!" she snarled.<br>Whisperpaw shrunk back.  
>Relaxing, the black and white apprentice sighed. "Sorry."<br>Whisperpaw beamed and motion to the entrance. Blackpaw stumbled in grinning. Lemonpaw followed him.  
>"How was the Gathering?" Echopaw inquired.<br>"Great, Echopaw!" Blackpaw grinned at her.  
>Lemonpaw blinked. "Yeah, you should've been there, Echo."<br>"WindClan accused us of stealing, but who would want to eat rabbit, ew."  
>"Mhm. We totally showed them, though. Troutstar denied it and-"<br>"-he pointed out they normally steal fish-"  
>"-and WindClan got upset-"<br>"-but we Troutstar totally glared down Heatherstar-"  
>"-and it was awesome!"<br>The two brothers fell down laughing.  
>Echopaw rolled her eyes, but she grinned, and when she glanced over at Whisperpaw, her friend was grinning too. But she was troubled, what if WindClan brought up the accusation with tooth and claw?<p> 


	2. Chapter 2

_Swipe... duck... swipe... jump... swipe... damn, he's good!  
><em>Echopaw hissed as Mudpelt hit her cheek. She tried to dive beneath him, but he plopped down on top of her.  
>"I win."<br>Echopaw grumbled unhappy before getting up. She limped a tiny bit before growling at her leg and straightening up. Her mentor looked at her in concern.  
>"Are you okay?"<br>"Fine." she assured him. "Let's keep going." She dropped into a defensive crouch. The warrior blinked at her. Cocking his head, he opened his mouth.  
>"Well, actually," he started, "I was going to go on a border patrol. Would you like to come?"<br>Echopaw's eyes lit up. "Yeah!"  
>"Great. I'll be showing you the different scents too, so pay attention on it." he nodded at her. "This isn't just a walk to look at the scenery."<br>Nodding, the apprentice grinned. "Of course." _Border patrol! Border patrol!_

Echopaw pawed at a bit of moss growing on a rock. "Soft." she tipped her head and looked at it closer. "Moist. Can I lap water off it?" she tentatively lapped at the moss. Swallowing, Echopaw blinked. "Not bad."  
>"Echopaw! Hurry up!"<br>Startled, the apprentice jumped. Looking up, she called: "Sorry!" then bounded up to her annoyed looking mentor.  
>"I told you, we're on a border patrol, not a walk to look at nature."<br>"Yeah, sorry."  
>Mudpelt huffed and turned, walking on with the rest of the patrol. Echopaw followed. "So which border are we going to first?" she asked.<br>"WindClan's."  
>"Oh."<br>"Do you know why that is?" the brown tom glanced back at her.  
>"Uh.. because..." Echopaw felt stumped. <em>Brain fart.<em> she thought in annoyance. Then a switch clicked in her mind. "Because they accused us of stealing."  
>"That's part of it. But they accused <em>us<em> of stealing, not the other way. We have had no trace of them on our land."  
>"Oh." After thinking for a moment, the switch turned the lightbulb on. "They're being hostile towards us, because of the accusation."<br>Mudpelt smiled at her. "Correct."  
>Echopaw beamed. Suddenly, a strong smell of moor and rabbits hit her nose. After being amongst the smell of fish and water for so long, the scent made her gag. "WindClan?"<br>"We're here!" Pebbleclaw called back. "Mudpelt, Echopaw, you go scout the border, make sure no cats crossed."  
>"Right." Mudpelt nodded.<br>"Trouttooth, you and I will reset the markers." A dark brown tabby, Trouttooth, nodded at the white warrior.  
>Echopaw grinned as she followed her mentor. "Do you think any cat will have crossed over?" she asked excitedly.<br>"I doubt it."  
>The black she-cat stuck her tongue out. "Don't you wanna fight?"<br>"Not really."  
>"But that's what we do, right?" Echopaw's eyes gleamed.<br>Mudpelt turned to look at her. His eyes were serious. "We protect our clan. Warriors don't just go looking for a fight. If it is necessary, we engage in battle, but _only _if it's necessary." he narrowed his eyes at her. "And the warrior code says that we do not need to kill to be victorious. Got that?"  
>Echopaw shrunk back from her suddenly threatening mentor. "Y-yeah. Got it."<br>Mudpelt nodded at her and turned. Echopaw relaxed and followed him; her jaws open to gather scents.  
>"Wait." Mudpelt held up a paw as Echopaw bumped into him from behind. "Smell that?"<br>Echopaw blinked and drank in the scents. "What am I trying to smell, exactly?"  
>"WindClan."<br>The apprentice rolled her eyes. "Well, yeah, we're right next to the border."  
>"No, on <em>our<em> land."  
>Echopaw blinked and bent down, sniffing. Suddenly, a strong, fresh blast of WindClan scent hit her nose. "Oh."<br>Mudpelt spun, jumping over her. "Let's go!"

"WindClan? On our land?" Troutstar's tailed lashed angrily. "Those good for nothing, StarClan forsaken rabbit-chasers!"  
>Stonefur nodded. "And after they accused us of stealing!" the deputy spat.<br>Pebbleclaw dipped his head to his leader. "With all due respect, Troutstar, there was no trace of them stealing food. They just seemed to have gone over the border then went back. No harm done."  
>"No harm done? No harm done?!" Stonefur snarled. "They trespassed! We have to teach them-"<br>"No, Pebbleclaw is right." Troutstar growled, though he still looked angry. "It may have just been some apprentices straying over the border. There's no evidence of them, so we'll leave it for now."  
>Stonefur grumbled but nodded at his leader. "Alright. It's your decision."<br>Echopaw sat in anticipation as her mentor returned from talking with their leader. "So? Are we gonna attack?"  
>"No," Mudpelt shook his head. "Troutstar's decided to leave it alone for now."<br>"What?!" Echopaw jumped up. "This is an outrage! They trespassed! We have to-"  
>"Leave it, Echopaw." her mentor growled. "I agree with you that it is an outrage that they would accuse us of stealing then trespass themselves, but I also agree with Troutstar. There's no evidence of theft, we should just leave it alone."<br>The black apprentice watched in shock as her mentor padded off to the warriors den.

Whisperpaw looked up as Echopaw returned. She cocked her head, her eyes gleaming.  
>"Hey, Whisperpaw. Yeah, training is fun. I practiced defence moves and attack moves with Mudpelt, then we went on a border patrol where we smelt WindClan in our territory and we told Troutstar but he says since there's no evidence of theft we're going to leave it alone." Finishing, Echopaw realised she run out of air. Immediately, she took a huge breath. Whisperpaw furrowed her brow. She knawed at her paw and Echopaw laughed at her strange language.<br>"Yeah, I think we should attack too, but what can we do? We're just apprentices."  
>Whisperpaw shrugged. Motioning outside, then fake chewing, she got up. Echopaw nodded.<br>"Sure, I'll come eat with you."  
>The tabby beamed and padded outside, her friend following her. Whisperpaw grabbed a fish and chucked it over to Echopaw. She jumped up and caught it in her jaws. Both of them carried their fish over to a side of the clearing before settling down to eat when-<br>"Hiya, guys. Can I sit with you?" Lemonpaw beamed at them.  
>"Nope." Echopaw said.<br>Whisperpaw shook her head.  
>Lemonpaw's face fell. "Aw, please?"<br>"Nope." Echopaw said.  
>Whisperpaw shook her head.<br>His shoulders slumped. "Pretty please?"  
>"Nope." Echopaw said.<br>Whisperpaw shook her head.  
>"Not even if I beg you?" Lemonpaw asked.<br>"Nope." Echopaw said.  
>Whisperpaw shook her head.<br>Lemonpaw looked at them. "Why not?"  
>Echopaw glanced at Whisperpaw. Whisperpaw glanced at Echopaw.<br>"Dammit." muttered Echopaw. "Alright, you can sit with us."  
>"Yay!"<p>

"Echo. Echo, wake up."  
>A paw prodded at Echopaw's side. She groaned and turned.<br>"Wake up, lazy."  
>The black she-cat opened one eye. Blackpaw was looking down at her.<br>"We're on the dawn patrol." he said.  
>Echopaw sat up, blinking sleep out of her eyes. "Alright." she yawned. "I'll be there in a second."<br>Her denmate nodded and padded out.  
>After giving herself a quick grooming, Echopaw stretched and padded out of the den.<br>"Echopaw, glad you could join us." Stonefur grunted.  
>The apprentice dipped her head.<br>"Shall we head off?" asked a tortoishell, Streampelt.  
>Stonefur looked at Streampelt. "Yeah, sure, whatever you say." he murmured.<br>Streampelt laughed. "Well, ok, lets go."  
>Echopaw glanced between them, then another lightbulb switched on. <em>Oh right, they're mates. I forgot.<em> She trotted after the rest of the patrol, nodding to the guard as she passed him. Recognising the route, she realised they were heading to the WindClan border again. Around halfway there, Echopaw's ears picked up a splashing, bounding up to Stonefur, she asked whether she could quickly hunt then catch up. Shrugging, Stonefur sent her off.  
>Echopaw turned around and ran back to where she'd heard the splashing. She didn't recall there being water here when they came the other day, but splashing means there's water and there's something in it.<br>Poking her head through some reeds, she saw a fish splashing in a shallow pool. _I wonder how it got_ _there. _She shrugged and bounded forward. Just as she was about to jab her paw on to the fish, a huge, deafening bang filled her ears.  
>She screamed<br>and  
>things<br>fell  
>around<br>her. She scrambled backwards and another huge  
>BANG!<br>filled her ears.  
>"Echopaw!" The apprentice spun to see Stonefur running towards her when-<p> 


	3. Chapter 3

-the ground blew up infront of her, dust and rocks and pebbles going everywhere.  
>The apprentice screamed again, but dust filled<br>her  
>lungs and she<br>choked when something  
>grabbed her from behind<p>

and tried to pull her away  
>but she pulled out of its grip and<br>another bang filled the air and she heard something whiz past her ear  
>and she let out another scream. "What's<p> 


	4. Chapter 4

happening out there?!" shrieked Rippleheart, her kits c  
>o<br>w  
>e<br>r  
>i<br>n  
>g beneath her.<br>"I don't understand!"  
>shrieked Lemonpaw. "What<br>happened?"  
>Blackpaw<br>struggled for words, his eyes wild. "Explosions- Echopaw- hunting- TWOLEGS!"


	5. Chapter 5

Echopaw swiped at the thing that had grabbed her. Through dust, she saw the outline of it. It was tall and had four legs, but only stood on two of them.  
>It reached d<br>o  
>w<br>n and tried to  
>grab her, but she scrambled back and ran towards where she had<br>seen Stonefur, but he wasn't there  
>anymore.<p>

"Where are you,


	6. Chapter 6

Echopaw?!" Stonefur yowled, ignoring the stinging wound on his leg. Something had grazed it, ripping the fur and skin off. But that didn't matter. He had to find Echopaw.  
>"Where are you, Stonefur?!" cried a familiar voice.<br>_Echopaw!_  
>The warrior's ears pricked, and he scanned the area. Through a shower of dust, he saw a small shape. "Echopaw!" he shouted, racing towards the shape.<br>"Stonefur!" the voice called.  
>The RiverClan deputy ran through the dust and grabbed Echopaw by the scruff, pulling her up. She coughed and gasped for breath through the dust.<br>"Don't worry, Echopaw." Stonefur pushed her on to his back. "I'll get you out of here." He padded forward, another bang sounded and pebbles and dirt flew up behind him. Stonefur coughed and his eyes stung and his leg burned, but he limped to the stream and lay Echopaw down in the reeds. "Drink." he ordered. "It'll clear your throat." the apprentice nodded weakly and gulped down some water.  
>Stonefur himself waded into the water and settled down, the water washing blood and grime off his wound. He lapped at the water and glanced behind Echopaw. <em>Hopefully,<em> he thought, _we're safe_ now.

Echopaw swallowed some more water. Though her throat still hurt, she could feel the water washing the dust away. Huddling further into the reeds, she dipped her dirt-covered paws into the water. Her claws looked disgusting and her fur was filled with dirt.  
>"What's going on, Stonefur?"<br>"Twolegs, I think."  
>"What are those?"<br>"Well," he thought for a moment, "they have four legs, but they only stand on two. They use the other two for other things."  
>"Strange."<br>"I think so."  
>Echopaw grabbed a minnow in her jaw and swallowed it. "Do you think the rest of the clan is ok?"<br>"I don't know."

"Whisperpaw? Whisperpaw!" Echopaw called, padding into their camp. Stonefur limped in behind her.  
>"Streampelt!" he yowled. His eyes were dark as he scanned the broken camp. The stick dens were knocked over and the great tree was missing a branch, which had crashed on to a den.<br>A small mewl.  
>"What was that?" Echopaw stared around.<br>Another small mewl.  
>"Hell," she murmured. "There's a kit in here."<br>Stonefur nodded gravely. "The nursery." he pointed to the den with the tree branch on it.  
>"Holy crap!" Echopaw bounded over, trying to reach a paw under. "It's ok, we'll get you out!" she pushed her two front paws under the branch and tried lifting it. It didn't work. "Come and help!" she yelled at Stonefur.<br>He shook his head. "It's not use, we can't lift that branch."  
>"Yes, we can!" snarled the apprentice. She pushed her snout under and tried pushing her head under. After around 3 minutes of pushing Echopaw got her head and shoulders under. With a huge heave, she tried to lift upwards. She felt a small paw touch hers. Squinting through the darkness, she saw a kit stuck under the branch by his tail. "Crap." She gave another heave and tried to push up. The branch wouldn't budge.<br>Stonefur padded up to her. "We can't do it. It pains me, but we have to go."  
>"No!" Echopaw took a huge breath, held it, breathed out, took another breath, drew a great heave and pushed.<br>And the branch moved.  
>Stonefur stared in shock as the apprentice slowly, very, very slowly, pushed the branch up, little by little. "Great StarClan..."<br>A brown kit rushed out from under the branch, his tail squished and bleeding. Echopaw panted and slipped out. Splinters stuck into her back and she felt even more dirt in her fur than before. Oh well.  
>"How did you do that, Echopaw?" Stonefur was staring at her. "How did you push it up?"<br>Echopaw allowed herself a moment of smugness. "Brute strength."  
>"Echo! Echo!" the small brown kit pawed her leg. "Echo!"<br>The apprentice blinked down at the kit. She smiled and licked its ear. Looking up at Stonefur, she cocked her head. "Y'know, I don't know this kit. Who is it?"  
>"I... I don't know."<br>She nodded slowly. "Well, that's ok. It's a kit, the warrior code says we have to protect all kits, right?"  
>Stonefur paused. "Well, yes-"<br>"Then it's settled!" She beamed. Scooping up the kit, she padded forward. "Come on, Dirtkit! We're gonna go find RiverClan!"


	7. Chapter 7

"Dirtkit!" Stonefur frowned at the brown kit. "What are you doing?"  
>The tom looked up from where he was playing with the small fish. He mewed.<br>"That's our only catch!" grumbled the RiverClan deputy. Paw steps behind him. Echopaw was back.  
>"What do you think you're doing?" growled the apprentice. She stepped up beside Stonefur. "Dirtkit! That's our food!"<br>The kit whined.  
>"No! You're not allowed to play with our food."<br>The kit blinked with wide teary eyes.  
>"No."<br>Dirtkit mewled.  
>"Our. Food."<br>He hung his head and dragged himself off to the shade of a couple of reeds.  
>Stonefur sighed at the sight of the dust-covered fish, little claw marks covered its scales. "Did you manage to find anything? Have any fish come back?"<br>Echopaw shook her head sadly. "I guess it's too early. The twoleg attack did only happen a few sunrises ago." she prodded the fish. "I guess... we'll have to eat this."  
>"StarClan, send back the fish." murmured Stonefur as he turned and limped off to the reeds where Dirtkit had gone.<p>

"Alright!" Echopaw beamed at Dirtkit and Stonefur. "To take our minds off things, I'm going to tell you two a story!"  
>Dirtkit jumped up and down, his half a tail swishing from side to side. Stonefur rolled his eyes.<br>"Ok! My mother told me this one!" Echopaw ears twitched excitedly. "Once, a long time ago, at the very edge of the universe there was a planet. No one knew about the planet. This planet was Earth. there was nothing on the Earth except land and water. No grass, no trees, no cats, no prey, no nothing. Well, there was one thing." she paused. "A lonesome thing that held no form yet was there. It was powerless to help it's home planet. But, a creature came. A magnificent creature, with long silver fur and stars in its pelt. It had long golden antlers, and piercing black eyes. It walked on four legs, and had tough brown hooves. It's tongue was long and forked, and it had a scaley tail, and from the tip of it's tail grew long blades of grass. It's teeth were sharp and it had a set of fangs, while it's ears were triangle-shaped and curved. Portruding from the creature's back were two huge feathered wings, which started silver, like it's fur, but faded into gold-"  
>"Hold on!" Stonefur stopped her. "There's no way in StarClan this creature existed."<br>Echopaw lifted her chin. "You believe in StarClan, do you not?"  
>"Yes, but that's-"<br>"Well this is way my mother told me and what I believe." insisted the black and white apprentice. "Anyway, the creature found the earth, and it took pity on it. Taking the planet in it's hooves, it galloped further into the universe, so that it was amongst other planets and near the sun. It left it there, hoping cells from the other planets would travel to Earth and things would grow. When nothing happened, the thing on Earth cried out to the creature, hoping it would hear it's calls." smiling slightly, she continued: "The creature heard the thing's despaired calls, and travelled back to the planet. When it found it still a barren place with only the thing on it, the creature was dismayed. It had the power to do _something_, but it didn't know what to do. The thing saw it's chance and cried out to the creature,  
>'Oh great and powerful being, won't you prick some grass from your tail, and scatter it across my Earth to grow plants? Oh great and powerful being, won't you shower tiny shards of your heart across my Earth to create animals? Oh great and powerful being, won't you build piles of ground on my Earth to create mountains? Oh great and powerful being, won't you breathe your icy breath across parts of my Earth to create snowy parts? Oh great and powerful being, won't you stay and breathe and thaw ice across my Earth to create seasons?'<br>The creature, it's heart full of sympathy for the lonesome thing, plucked blades of grass from the tip of it's scaley tail and threw them across the barren Earth, grass and plants and trees growing rapidly across the planet. The creature, it's heart full of hope for the once barren planet, pulled a piece of it's own heart out, broke it into tiny shards and scattered the shards across the earth, animals forming with various different features from the creature, snakes had it's long scaley tail and forked tongue, deer had it's long antlers, dogs had it's sharp fangs, cats had it's curved, traingle-shaped ears, birds had its feathered wings, horses had it's tough hooves and many other creatures had other features. The creature, it's heart light, dug various tunnels from the Earth's dirt, creating caves, and used the dirt to create mountains. The creature, it's heart high in it's chest, breathed it's icy breath across parts of the planet, snow and ice forming. The creature gazed across the no-longer-barren planet in joy. The thing asked about it's final request expectedly, but the creature shook it's head.  
>'I cannot stay,' it said. 'I must continue my travels. But I will give you a form and the power to change the seasons yourself.'<br>The thing, delighted, asked how. The creature picked up the thing and threw it into the sun. The thing screamed in pain and hurt at the thought that it had been betrayed as it hit the sun, and it's soul flew away from the sun. The creature grabbed it's soul, having not actually betraying the thing, and gave the escaped soul a form. It's form was was huge and made of rock. Pulling a large chunk out of it's heart, the creature gave the thing the chunk, bestowing upon it the power to change the seasons for it's Earth. It placed the thing in the sky. As a goodbye and good wishes gift, it shook the stars out of its fur and scattered them in a thick line across the sky, creating what we call Silverpelt. Then it galloped off."  
>"Where go?" asked Dirtkit, his eyes wide.<br>Though he tried not to appear intrigued, Stonefur pricked his ears. The apprentice's belief was new and interesting, and he wanted to hear the rest of her story.  
>"I don't know." Echopaw answered the kit gently. "The great creature was never seen again. But, the thing now had a form and the power to change seasons. It curled up in the sky, creating," she stopped to cause suspense. "The moon."<br>Instantly, Stonefur lifted his head to look at the moon. It was only half there at the time. Could it really be a living creature?  
>"It slept." the apprentice said. "It slept and slept, but woke up every now and then to check on it's home planet. Right now, it is only a little awake. When it is fully awake, it will only be just a thick, curved line. Then it will fall back into it's slumber, it's sub-conscious changing the seasons for us." She grew silent and Stonefur blinked.<br>"Is... is that the end?" he asked.  
>Echopaw shook her head. "It is nothing near the end. This story is still going, and it will still be going for years and years now. For this story isn't about the past or the present or the future, it is about all of them at the same time. It ends when the Earth is destroyed and it has nothing more to tell. But who knows," her eyes twinkled, "maybe the creature will come back after that, and a whole new story can begin."<p>

Echopaw trudged along with Dirtkit hanging from her jaws. He hung limply, not wanting to struggle. Stonefur limped silently along beside the apprentice. Suddenly, a shape moved beneath the water of the river. Echopaw's head snapped towards the water. The shape swam across again. The apprentice dropped Dirtkit on the ground and leapt into the running water.  
>"Echopaw!" Stonefur yowled. "The current's too strong!"<br>Echopaw sunk. Sunk and sunk down near the bottom of the river. The current wasn't very strong down there, and though her eyes stung she could see the shape swimming back and forth infront of her. She tried to lunge at it, but the water slowed her movement. _How the heck do they fish down here?_ She lashed out, but again the water slowed her movement. Her lungs screaming, she couldn't help gasping for breath. Water immediately filled her mouth and throat, and she tried to yell. Snapping her mouth closed, the fish swam by just as she did and it's bones crunched in her jaws. Eye's wide with surprise, the apprentice kicked off the bottom and up to the top. Immediately, the current ripped her along and she yelped as she hit a rock, but managed to grab the fish in time.  
>"Echopaw!" Stonefur yowled. "Hold on!"<br>The apprentice shook her head and tried to clamber on to the rock. She slipped and slid and the current was against her but she managed to get on. On shaky legs she leapt on to the shoor and spat out the fish. Her lungs were half-full with water and she coughed and choked. Water dripped out of her mouth. Stonefur limped up and struck her chest. Echopaw shrieked and water flowed out from her mouth. She heaved and gasped.  
>"I..."<br>"What is it?" Stonefur asked in concern.  
>"I got the fish."<p>

**Echopaw's story practically wrote itself! I was very happy with it. It doesn't relate to the plot at all, I just felt it was a nice touch, as Echopaw likes to tell stories her mom used to tell her and it would take their mind off things.**  
><strong>~Bubble<strong>


End file.
